Enforcement

The Federal Reserve terminated a 2016 agreement with the Industrial Bank of Korea and its New York branch for processing more than $1 billion in sanction-violating transactions.

The revised policy increased maximum penalties for the largest banks, outlined stronger accountability measures and expanded the OCC's authority to restrict business activities.

Eagle Bancorp in Bethesda has agreed to pay $22.9 million to regulators to settle claims it failed to report loans totaling $99 million made to founder Ron Paul, who will pay more than $500,000 in fines in addition to being barred from the industry.

The allegations against the $559 billion-asset bank are similar to those brought against Wells Fargo related to its 2016 fake-accounts scandal.

The Justice Department, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and three state attorneys general alleged that Trident Mortgage, a lender owned by Berkshire Hathaway, engaged in redlining and discrimination in the Philadelphia area.

The credit reporting agency is trying to get a CFPB lawsuit dismissed by claiming the consumer bureau didn’t sign off on a 2017 consent order for the same violations.

The Department of Justice is prosecuting ex-JPMorgan Chase bankers under federal racketeering law, a move public interest advocates hope could lead to more accountability for financial firms.

Current regulations barring out-of-state banks from siphoning deposits from local communities are effectively toothless, as the experience in Miami has shown.

The agency said the risk management program for Cenlar FSB, which performs servicing functions for financial institution clients, was inadequate for the bank's size.

The agency’s enforcement action against a Virginia nonprofit is seen as reining in income-share agreements, which give students tuition in exchange for future wages and which critics complain have evaded scrutiny. Clearer regulatory guidance could solidify ISAs’ legal viability, proponents say.

The agency’s enforcement action against Better Future Forward says the nonprofit’s income-share agreements — an alternative education finance product — must follow the Truth in Lending Act just like other forms of student loans.

Critics of consolidation say the Federal Reserve and other agencies are too quick to greenlight bank deals. But the truth is banks face many hurdles to merger approval, and they don’t bother to apply — or take a hint and withdraw their applications — if they can’t clear them all.

The Department of Housing and Urban Development and Federal Housing Finance Agency, which supervises Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, formed a pact to share information and coordinate investigations of potential fair-lending violations.

The inquiry involves employees' "business communications sent over electronic messaging channels that have not been approved by the firm,” JPMorgan Chase says.

A three-judge panel determined that a lower-court ruling against two law firms specializing in mortgage repair had used the wrong measure to calculate restitution.

The Securities and Exchange Commission accuses the company of improperly profiting from sales of the digital token XRP. Here’s how Ripple’s high-priced legal team is trying to poke holes in the government's case.

Rohit Chopra, who was the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's first student loan ombudsman, is expected to crack down on unfair debt collection and other practices once he is confirmed by the Senate to lead the bureau. Observers predict he'll work closely with former CFPB Director Richard Cordray, who now oversees the Education Department’s $1.7 trillion portfolio of federal student loans.

The Biden administration wants financial institutions to tell the government more about their customers to help the IRS thwart wealthy tax evaders. But critics say the plan could threaten account data security and the privacy of even low-income consumers.

The company is making many employees sift through years of text messages on personal devices and set aside any related to work to ensure U.S. rules on keeping copies of business communications are met even after many months of remote work, according to people with knowledge of the situation.

Any bank that engages in auto, mortgage or other retail lending should develop a comprehensive program to identify potential risks of noncompliance with consumer protection rules and take corrective actions before the Biden-era Consumer Financial Protection Bureau comes calling.